Victory Mission will end lunch service at Cook's Kettle on Commercial Street

Some changes are in store for a 40-year-old ministry in the Queen City. One of the most noticeable ones will be for Cook's Kettle, a restaurant run by Springfield Victory Mission, on Commercial Street. The restaurant plans to stop serving lunch to customers on Sept. 23.

With more and more restaurants moving onto Commercial Street, the lunch crowd is not what it once was at Cook's Kettle, Victory Mission leaders said.

"It takes away the guests who were coming here all the time, because now they have different options and different opportunities," said Laura Rush, community involvement coordinator for Victory Mission.

The fast-paced kitchen at Cook's Kettle has provided a real-life classroom for culinary students for the last 13 years. Now the focus will move to a catering business, already underway, as well as more classroom time for students.

"I was 51 years old when I became homeless for the first time. I was homeless for four years," said culinary student Bobby Brasswell.

"When they found out my passion for cooking, they asked me if I'd be interested in coming down here to Missouri to go to school," he said.

Victory Mission hopes to see even more success stories with the changes as they look to make a better use of resources. Cook's Kettle is just one of two big changes underway.

"We are also going to close our Victory House, our women's facility. It started in 1992 as an emergency shelter. Take that opportunity to hopefully move it closer to where we are, make it a little bit more centralized," Rush said.

The Cook's Kettle will maintain its evening meal service. The housing facility for men will also remain open.